KITCHEN FRAU: Summer herb vinaigrette and zucchini salad

KITCHEN FRAU: Summer herb vinaigrette and zucchini salad

I’ve used parsley, chives, basil, mint, tarragon, dill, cilantro, lemon balm, thyme, oregano, lovage, rosemary and borage for the vinaigrette, just because I’ve got them all growing in my garden, but even if you only have a few, your dressing will still be delicious. Even just parsley (more like a chimichurri flavour) or basil (more like a pesto flavour) makes a great dressing.

The garden is at its best right now, even with all the rain and cool weather we’ve had. I’m bringing in buckets of zucchini, carrots, and potatoes every day. We’ve got beets the size of footballs. The peas and beans are long finished, corn is ready, and herbs are sprawling over their neighbours with blatant disregard for personal space boundaries.

I love going out with my pail and garden snippers to harvest a little bunch of this and a handful of that to make lovely late-summer salads.

I’ve used parsley, chives, basil, mint, tarragon, dill, cilantro, lemon balm, thyme, oregano, lovage, rosemary and borage for the vinaigrette, just because I’ve got them all growing in my garden, but even if you only have a few, your dressing will still be delicious. Even just parsley (more like a chimichurri flavour) or basil (more like a pesto flavour) makes a great dressing.

Pluck the leaves and blossoms off the stems, pack them lightly into a measuring cup, then whiz up with a bit of vinegar, oil, aromatics and yogurt for a dressing that’ll knock your sandals off.

Arrange several handfuls of spiralized or thinly sliced zucchini in a bowl, toss on a tangle of thinly sliced red onion, a few halved cherry tomatoes, and plop the beautiful garden-green dressing all over it. Then you can play at being an artist, and decorate your salad with a sprinkle of chopped fresh herbs, a crown of colourful blossoms, or a sprinkling of edible flower petals.

Or plop the dressing onto steamed or baked potatoes, dress up grilled salmon, chicken breasts, or steak. You’ll have a feast for your eyes and your tongue. Beauty in a bowl.

Kitchen Frau Notes: Use whatever herbs you’ve got – just make sure to use only small amounts of the stronger flavoured herbs, like rosemary, sage, oregano, lovage, etc, and have a good portion of your herb mixture be a milder base-flavoured herb, like parsley, chives, or basil.

Pluck the herb leaves and blossoms off the stems and pack them lightly into a measuring cup to measure.

Place all ingredients into a blender or food processor. Process until the dressing is almost smooth, but still has tiny flecks of green herbs visible. You may have to stop the blender or processor occasionally to scrape down the sides.

Will keep refrigerated for up to two weeks.

Use to dress any kinds of salads or serve on burgers, potatoes, or grilled meats.

Stir a bit of water or milk into the vinaigrette if you’d like it thinner to dress light, leafy salads.

Makes about 1¾ cups.

Zucchini Salad

2 to 3 medium zucchini

¼ of a red onion, sliced very thinly, preferably on a mandoline

a couple handfuls cherry or grape tomatoes, red or yellow

thinly sliced radishes or slivers of sweet peppers, optional

several large spoonfuls Herb Vinaigrette

edible flowers or chopped fresh herbs for garnish

Spiralize the zucchini with a spiralizer, a julienne peeler, or cut it into fine slices or sticks by hand. If using a spiralizer, make a lengthwise cut down the length of the zucchini before spiralizing, cutting in only as far as the center of the zucchini. This will keep your spirals at shorter lengths so they are easier to manage and serve

Spread out the zucchini in a shallow serving bowl. Slice the onion very thinly and sprinkle it over the zucchini. Halve the cherry tomatoes and arrange them over top. Dollop the herb vinaigrette evenly over the top and decorate with chopped fresh herbs or edible flowers or petals.